This proposal is to request support for a Keystone Symposia meeting entitled "Deregulation of Transcription in Cancer", organized by Beverly M. Emerson and Edison T. Liu, which will be held in Killarney, Ireland from June 21 - 26, 2009. Transcription is an intricate process that is regulated with exquisite specificity at both the genetic and epigenetic levels through such aspects as chromatin and core RNA polymerase machinery. Sophisticated mechanisms have been recently deciphered concerning how specific genes and pathways are deregulated in human cancers. Yet a great disparity exists between the non specificity of most cancer therapies and the advanced understanding of the basis for aberrant gene expression. This conference will focus on exploiting novel mechanistic information to generate more efficacious targeted therapies. Current insights into the mechanisms by which specific genes are deregulated in cancer, the resulting transcriptome signature for particular cancers and state-of-the-art therapeutic approaches using small molecules or RNA interference will be presented. The goals of this meeting are to facilitate the translation of basic knowledge to biomedical applications by bringing together those studying basic mechanisms with those developing new technologies or therapeutics. Public Health Relevance: Cancer is a collection of heterogeneous diseases characterized by global changes in patterns of gene expression - or gene deregulation. This conference will focus on exploiting novel mechanistic information to generate more efficacious targeted cancer therapies. The goals of this meeting are to facilitate the translation of basic knowledge to biomedical applications by bringing together those studying basic mechanisms with those developing new technologies or therapeutics.